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Tim Cook at the D Conference: Between the Lines — Apple boss Tim Cook spoke Tuesday night at the D10 conference, his first major public interview since becoming CEO of Apple last year. His chat touched on everything from what he learned from Steve Jobs to his big-picture goal for Apple: to build great products, of course.

Beneath contempt: The Apple TV business model … Tim Cook at D10 1:45. — I note the “our” in “our year”. This implies fiscal year (that and the fact that he spoke in the past tense before six months had passed in the calendar year.) — Given the public information we have so far …

Zagat goes free with launch of Google+ Local — Since Google bought Zagat last September for a reported $151 million, the company hasn't done much with Zagat's local content. That changes today with the rollout of Google+ Local, which incorporates Zagat scores and summaries into its listings …

Apple Store now selling Nest Learning Thermostat for $249.95 — It turns out the rumors were true: Apple has begun selling the Nest Learning Thermostat in its online store for $249.95. It's the second large retail expansion for Nest in the past 24 hours, with the company announcing Canadian availability …

Skype's present is secure, its future is not — It has been over six months since Microsoft officially became an owner of Skype, one of the biggest communication services in the world. The company has been growing quietly, thanks to its “Skype everywhere” strategy.

Mary Meeker Explains the Mobile Monetization Challenge — Looming over the Internet industry is the mismatch between the growth in mobile usage and mobile monetization. — Most recently, it was the risk factor that helped take down Facebook's ill-fated IPO roadshow, when the company warned …

Once Deemed Evil, Google Now Embraces “Paid Inclusion” — Back when Google was an upstart search engine, one way it distinguished itself was to fight against a pay-to-play business model called “paid inclusion.” Indeed, paid inclusion was one of the original sins Google listed as part of its “Don't Be Evil” creed.

Wasting Time Is New Divide in Digital Era — In the 1990s, the term “digital divide” emerged to describe technology's haves and have-nots. It inspired many efforts to get the latest computing tools into the hands of all Americans, particularly low-income families. — Those efforts have indeed shrunk the divide.

Kayak Said To Postpone IPO Following Facebook'S Tumble — Kayak Software Corp. is delaying its initial public offering following Facebook Inc. (FB)'s post-IPO tumble, according to a person close to the situation. — The Norwalk, Connecticut-based online-travel service has postponed …

Netflix agrees to delete data on ex-customers — Turns out that nobody has to know about that copy of Bad Girls of Red Light District 6: The Extended Cut you rented from Netflix just over a year ago. — U.S. District Court papers filed Friday revealed greater detail as to how Netflix settled …

Top that, cable! Verizon offers 300 Mbps home broadband — Bored with your 100 Mbps connection? Verizon plans to offer customers up to 300 Mbps down via its FiOS fiber service next month. That's double Verizon's current top speed of 150 Mbps down and a slam against cable companies trying to compete with Big Red.

Sweep the Sleaze — Promising to make you look wired and magically promote your content in social networks, the Like, Retweet, and +1 buttons occupy a good spot on pretty much every page of the World Wide Web. Because of this, almost every major site and world brand is providing free advertising for Twitter and Facebook.

Why Salesforce buying Buddy Media makes sense — Salesforce is adapting to the increasingly social face of customer relationship management and it's plunking down some serious money to do it. The company is reportedly close to snapping up social media marketing platform Buddy Media for $800 million …

Kevin Rose's Next Move: Partner at Google Ventures — Kevin Rose, who joined Google in March to work on Google+ along with some of his team from mobile app incubator Milk, has moved to Google Ventures, a spokeswoman confirmed today. — Rose is now a venture partner at the firm focused …

Sony Considers—but Rejects—Online-Only Game Console — Sony is looking to the next generation of its gaming consoles. Above, a 2009 poster of the Sony Playstation logo. — Sony Corp. considered but ultimately rejected a download-only plan for its next videogame console …

Badgeville raises $25M, shows gamification has legs — While skeptics still scoff at the term gamification, Badgeville keeps gaining the trust of big companies and investors, who believe in its power. Badgeville announced Wednesday it raised $25 million in a round led by Interwest Partners …

Quri: Startup Wants To Pay You To Take Pics While You Shop — In the latest example of the growing fragmentation of the world of work, a new company called Quri is offering to pay shoppers for collecting pictures and other data while they shop in supermarkets, drug stores and other retail outlets.

Facebook's Cognitive Dissonance with Sharing — Two philosophies — One of Facebook's core philosophies is that a user's privacy is paramount. Part of that privacy is the data you create by browsing Facebook is never shown to other users. You'll never see a newsfeed story that says, “Joe viewed your profile 1,024 times.”

ICANN to Reveal Proposed Domain Names June 13 — Those anxiously waiting to find out what new names may be introduced to the Internet's domain name system will finally find out on June 13. — The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, the nonprofit group that manages the domain name system …